Flying toy



July 20,1948- H. E. DUNN 2,445,611

FLYING TOY Filed Jan. 23, 1947 v 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 July 20, 1948. H. E. DUNN 2,445,611

FLYING TOY 4 "Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 23, 1947 H. E. DUNN FLYING TOY July 20, 1948.

4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Jan. 25, 1947 bllll July 20, 1948. H, E, DUNN 2,445,611

FLYING TOY Filed Jan. 23, 1947 l 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented July 20, 1948 UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFICE v 2,445,61l v I T Harold E. Dunn, Corpus Christi, Tex. Applicationllanuary 23, 19%7, "serial'ne; 723,818

2 claims. (01. 244-153) This invention" relates to an aerial toy which is-intend'ed to be flown in'the wind at the end of ;a stringer tether 'in" a manner somewhat similar to the flying of familiar toy kites.

Mbre'l-"specificallm'the' invention relates" to a fiying' toy' which utilizes the flying principles of botha kite and helicopter, The toy is provided with a rotor assembly adapted to revolve about ai ver'tical axis; 'The rotor assembly is provided with a" plurality of trough shaped impeller blades which 'are riiount'ed parallel to the axis of rotauqn; Tl'iesetrough-shaped impeller blades function ina maiiner similar to the hemispherical cups of a Robinson-anemometer toimpart rotationto the rotor assembly when the'assembly is poised in wind. The rotor assembly is also provided with-a lift propeller which rotates with the'li-assernbly and"which provides lift for the toy. ln -one-illustrated embodiment of my invention 'a singlerotorassembly is provided, while a pair of rotor assemblies are provided in another illustrated embodiment of the invention; It is apparent that a greater number of rotor assembliesfcould fbe Thetoyisalso'provided with laterally extendingfwing's which are disposed to provide additional-lift forfthe'toy. Y

"For-{a better understanding'of my invention I ic'all attention to the following detailed description'and the accompanying drawings which illustrate exemplary forms of the invention.

In the orawings:

Figure 1' is'fa side elevation view of one form ofj'theinvention which embodiesa single rotor assemblfi- V I Fig. 2-is a top plan view of the formof the inventio snowui Fig; 1;

Fig. -3'i's -'a-section alview looking n the direction --of;;the'arrows alongth'e line 3-3' of Fig. '1; "Fig. 4' 'is' a sectional viewlooking in the direction of-Qthe "rrows along the line" i -'4" of Fig? '1'; 'FigZ 5" front elevation view of the formof the inventionsnowuimi 'ig. If

:Fi'gll6. is a sectional view of the rotor assembly looking in: thedirection of the arrows along the linesii-z-fiiaoflFig. 1; 1

:Fi'g.-:-7;is aisideelevation view of one of the impeller :blad'es prior to foldin Fig. .8 is ;a' fragmentary view illustrating the upperjandrlowerbearing members for therotor assemhl'yin the form of. the. invention illustrated iniFig. 1'15 n. l

.LiS. azside elevation view of amodified form: of-Jthe; invention whichutilizes ,apair of rotor'assemblies;. j

Fig. 10 is a front elevation view of the form of the invention illustrated in Fig. 9;

Fig. 11 is a sectional view of the upper rotor assembly and is taken in the direction of. the arrows along the line H--H of Fig. 10;

Fig. 12 is a sectional view of the lower rotor assembly and is taken inthe direction of the arrows along the line l2-l2 of Fig. 10; and

Fig. 13 is a fragmentary view of the two bearimg members which are provided on the middle strut in the form of the invention illustrated inFig. 9.

Referring'first to the form of the invention illustrated in Figs. 1 to 8, the toy comprises a flatframe of generally polygonal shape which is illustrated generally by the reference numeral I4; A post l5 provides the leading edge of the frame. A strut l6 extends rearwardly from the lower endzof the post l5 and is secured to rear posts ll and I8 which extend upwardly and rearwardly from the strut 16. A strut l9 extends upwardly and forwardly from the upper ends of the posts [1. and I8 and is joined to a strut '20 which extends toward and is secured to the lead post l5, as is clearly shown in Fig. 1. Struts 2! and 22 extend in vertically spaced and parallel relation from the lead post l5 to the rear post l8, and these two struts cooperate with those posts to define an opening in the frame for the rotor assembly. Struts l6 and 22 cooperate with posts 15 and [8 to define an opening in the framefor the rudder which is described hereinafter. A plurality of reenforcing ribs, designated by the reference numeral 23, extend from the strut 2| towardthe struts l9 and 20. A plurality vof reenforcing ribs 23a extend from the rear post l1 to the post l8.

Wings 24 and 25 are attached to the strut [9. These wings are formed of a skeleton framework as clearly illustrated inFigs. 2 and 5, and

have their upper and lower surfaces covered with paper or similarmaterial 26. I have found it advisable for the wings 24 and 25 tobe so disposed that theinupper surfaces define an angle of somewhat less than with each other. This arrangement is clearly shown in Fig. 5; and it adds to. the inherent stability of the toy. The leading edges of the-wings are disposed at a higher. elevation than the trailing edges, as is clearly shownin Fig. 1,,which permits the wings to contribute lift to the toy when his in flight.

The sides oitheframe [4 are also covered with paper or similarmaterial, with the excep tionthat the opening for the rotor assembly and the opening for the rudder are left uncovered. The covering for the sides of the frame is designated by the reference numeral 21.

The rotor assembly comprises a shaft 28, lower spokes 29 and 36, upper spokes 3| and 32 carrying angularly disposed propeller blades 33 at their outer ends, and trough-shaped impeller blades 34 which extend from the upper spokes to the lower spokes in parallel relation to the shaft 28. The lower end of the shaft 28 is mounted in a U-shaped bearing member 35 which fits the strut 22 as shown in Fig. 8, and is secured in position thereon by a backing strip 35 which is cemented or otherwise secured to the strut 22. This bearing member 35 has an opening in its upper leg through which the shaft 28 extends. The lower end of the shaft rests on and is supported by the lower leg of the bearing member. The upper end of the shaft 28 is mounted in a somewhat similar bearing member 31 which fits around the strut 2i, and is secured in position thereon by a backing strip 33. The lower leg of the bearing member 31 is provided with an opening through which the shaft 28 extends, and the upper leg is not perforated so that it provides a bearing surface to prevent upward movement of the shaft and rotor assembly.

The trough-shaped impeller blades are formed from a thin sheet of material of the shape illustrated in Fig. 7. The upper and lower ends are folded upwardly at right angles along the lines 59 and 40, respectively. One-half of the sheet is then folded upwardly at a right angle along the longitudinal center line M. The upper and lower ends of the thus folded impeller blades are then cemented to corresponding upper and lower spokes of the rotor assembly. These trough-shaped impeller blades function to cause rotation of the rotor assembly during the passage of wind past the frame. The impeller blades function in a manner somewhat comparable to the hemispherical cups of a Robinson anemometer, and it will be seen that rotation will always be in the direction of the arrows '42 shown in Fig, 6. The angularly disposed propeller blades 33 on the outer ends of the spokes 3:! and 32 provide lift as they rotate with the rotor assembly.

The rudder is best illustrated in Fig. 1, and is designated generally by the reference numeral 43. It is illustrated as formed of a bowed wire 44 having both of its ends secured to the lead post l5. The wire 44 is sufficiently stifi to retain the shape in which it is bent, and is covered with paper or other sheet material 45. The rudder can thus be bent to one side of the frame or the other, and it will retain its position during flight of the toy.

A bridle 35 is secured to the lead post I 5, preferably at the points illustrated in Fig. 1, and a tether 47 is attached to the bridle.

The toy can be launched merely by holding it with the axis of the rotor vertical and paying out the tether 41. The toy should be observed carefully when first launched to ascertain Whether it remains in vertical position or whether there is a tendency for it to rotate about the tether. Any instability of the toy in this respect can be corrected by adjustment of the rudder 43. The rudder should be bent slightly in the direction toward which the bottom of the toy tends to move. No further adjustment of the rudder is necessary after the appropriate initial adjustment has been made. The angular relationship of the Wings 24 and 25, the stabilizing effect of the rudder, and the slight 4 gyroscopic action of the rotor assembly all contribute to the stability of the toy in flight.

The rudder 43 in the form of the invention illustrated in Figs. 1 to 8 is necessary largely because of the difference in lift between those propeller blades 33 which at any instant are moving into the wind, and those propeller blades which at the same instant are moving with the wind. It is that difference in lift which would cause the single rotor toy to tend to rotate about the tether if the rudder were not present or were not properly adjusted. This tendency to rotate about the tether is eliminated in the form of the invention illustrated in Figs. 9 to 13, which utilizes a pair of rotor assemblies which rotate in opposite directions. When a pair of oppositely rotating rotor assemblies is used, the tendency of the blades of one propeller to cause rotation of the toy in one direction is offset by the tendency of the blades of the other propeller to rotate the toy in the opposite direction. Theoretically, the use of a rudder should be unnecessary with the oppositely rotating rotor assemblies, but as a practical matter I have found it advisable to include a rudder to compensate for any slight inaccuracies which may occur during manufacture or assembly.

The detailed description of the form of invention illustrated in Figs. 9 to 13, will be largely restricted to the features which differ in essential respects from the form of the invention previously described. The frame; 5| is somewhat larger than the frame utilized with the single rotor assembly, but it has a lead post 52, a rudder 53,.and wings 54'and 55, which are quite similar to those previously described. The sides of the frame are covered with paper or other sheet material except for the rudder opening and a pair of openings for the rotor assemblies. The upper rotor assembly opening is defined by the strut 56, the middle strut 51, the lead post 52, and the rearpost 58. The lower opening for a rotor assembly is defined by the middle strut 51, the lead post 52, the lower strut 59, and the rear post 58. The upper rotor assembly is provided with a shaft 60 having its upper end mounted in a bearing member Bl identical with the bearing member 31 previously'described. The lower end of the shaft fill is mounted in a U-shaped bearing' member 62 similar to the bearing member 35 previously described, but this bearing member is mounted on a block 63 which is mounted above the middle strut 51, as clearly shown in Fig. 13. The upper bearing member 64 for the upper end of the shaft 55 of the lower rotor assembly is mounted on the middle strut, as is also clearly illustrated in Fig. 13. The lower end of the shaft 65 is mounted in a bearing member 56 positioned on the lower strut 59. It will be seen that the shafts 58 and 65 are not exactly coaxial, but this is a matter of no consequence for the reason that both shafts are positioned equal distances. from the center line of the frame.

The upper rotor assembly has its impeller blades 6'! disposed so that the wind always causes the assembly to rotate counter-clockwise in the direction of the arrows 58 in Fig. 11. The propeller blades 69 on the upper rotor assembly are positioned to give liftduring such rotation of the upper rotor assembly. The lower rotor assembly has its impeller blades 10 disposed to cause the assembly to rotate clockwise in the direction of the arrows 1 I, as seen in Fig. 12. The propeller blades 12 on the lower rotor assembly are positioned to give lift during such clockwise rotation of the lower rotor assembly. The direction of rotation of each rotor assembly may be reversed. It is important only that the rotor assemblies rotate in opposite directions.

I have shown the shafts 6!] and 65 provided with spokes 13 intermediate the ends thereof. These spokes l3 pierce the impeller blades 61 and Hi to provide support at the mid portions of the propeller blades and to increase the sturdiness of the rotor assemblies. Similar spokes can be used on the shaft 28 in the form of the invention illustrated in Figs. 1 to 8.

A bridle 14 and a tether 15 are also provided and the manner of launching the toy is the same as that described above. The rudder 53 will ordinaril occupy its neutral position, but it is likely that there will be a slight tendency for the toy to rotate about the tether 15. This can be overcome by a slight adjustment of the rudder.

All portions of the toy should be constructed of materials of the lightest weight possible consistent with requisite strength and rigidity.

The foregoing description will enable those skilled in the art to clearly understand my invention and the principles of its operation. The description relates to what are now considered to be the preferred forms of my invention, but it will be obvious that various modifications may be resorted to without departing from the fundamental concepts of the invention as defined by the following claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. An aerial toy for sustained flight in wind comprising a fiat frame, a bridle secured at vertically spaced points to the front edge of the frame, a tether secured to said bridle, a wing extending outwardly from each side of the frame adjacent the upper portion thereof, said frame defining an opening therethrough, a shaft rotatably mounted to extend vertically from the lower to the upper edge of said opening, a plurality of trough-shaped impeller blades mounted on and parallel to said shaft and arranged to rotate said shaft upon passage of wind past said frame, a lift propeller secured to said shaft and to the upper ends of said impeller blades and arranged to rotate within said opening and to provide lift for said toy on rotation of said shaft, and a rudder member secured to the lower portion of said frame, said rudder being adjustable to maintain said frame in approximately vertical position during flight of said toy.

2. An aerial toy for sustained flight in wind comprising a flat frame, a bridle secured at vertically spaced points to the front edge of the frame, atether secured to said bridle, a wing extending outwardly from each side of the frame adjacent the upper portion thereof, said frame defining a pair of vertically spaced openings therethrough, a first shaft rotatably mounted to extend vertically from the lower edge of the lower of said openings to the upper edge thereof, a second shaft rotatably mounted to extend from the lower edge of the upper of said openings to the upper edge thereof, a plurality of troughshaped impeller blades mounted on and parallel to said first shaft and arranged to rotate said shaft in one direction upon passage of wind past said frame, a lift propeller secured to said first shaft and arranged to provide lift for said toy on rotation of said first shaft in said one direc tion, a plurality of trough-shaped impeller blades mounted on and parallel to said second shaft and arranged to rotate said second shaft in a direction opposite to that of said first shaft on passage of wind past said frame, and a lift propeller secured to said second shaft and arranged to provide lift for said toy on rotation of said second shaft in said opposite direction.

HAROLD E. DUNN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 443,373 Great Britain Feb. 24, 1936 518,068 Great Britain Feb. 16, 1940 

